Hello, i just recently install Arch Linux, and i had a few questions.

1. What file do i have to edit in order to include /usr/local/bin in the class path (ie. I put an executable in /usr/local/bin and when I try to execute it, it says the command cannot be found, etc.)
EDIT: Solved, just didn't set PATH correctly.
EDIT: New problem. When I try to execute a program in /usr/local/bin, it says "fopen: john.ini: File not found" Yet when i cd to /usr/local/bin, it doesn't say that. What would cause this?

2. Once I get my system setup the way i like it, how would i go about making it into a bootable CD/DVD?

3. How would I pass arguments from a shell script to a program?

Maybe the program and/or the directory doesn't have executable permissions. To change this, "chmod a+x" (assuming you want everyone -- "all" -- to be able to run it).

For the /usr/local/ directory (and directories in it such as /usr/local/bin), you may just wish the user (root) and the group (whatever group you have set) to have write permissions (so, members that are not a part of the group could not write to the directory). So, for the directories, try "chmod ug+w". Presumably everyone would be allowed to read the contents, so "chmod a+r".

[extraneous information]
For my /usr/local directory, I have set it up belonging to the group "staff". I had my normal user join this group, allowing the normal user to install programs here (in Debian the default prefix is /usr when packages are installed, not /usr/local. So, I use /usr/local as the place where I install programs from source to keep them separate from everything else).
[/extraneous information]

That's why I put the executable in/usr/local/bin because it is compiled code from the source i downloaded (john the ripper).

First, none of your questions have anything to do with Arch---they are generic Linux questions.

When you say "class path', I think you mean the $PATH environment variable. If a command does not work, then it's path is not in $PATH.

To add something to $PATH (eg /opt/stuff), do this:
export PATH="$PATH:/opt/stuff"

To make this happen on system startup, you need to put it in one of the init scripts.

2. For making a Live CD, search on Google--I'm sure there are a bazillion hits.

3. to pass arguments to a program, put them after the call to the program---just as you would when running interactively in a terminal

the folder " /usr/local/bin" is not in the system default
nor is there that folder .Unless you installed something to that folder .
Do not install things there UNLESS this IS a network set-up and the "/usr/local" IS THE HARD DISK of the box you are sitting in front of .


for arch ( not using gdm as a service) but as a daemon ( the default)
this file IS NOT USED BY DEFAULT ( changes here will NOT do anything)
/home/user-name/.bash_profile

you need to edit /etc/profile ( as root from the terminal )
and add that path to it .